Arsenal most interested club in Barcelona defender perfect for Arteta’s plans
Arsenal are the club said to be most interested in signing a Barcelona star who’s already been hailed as a “smart solution” for the Premier League champions.
The Gunners have spent the last few weeks looking at improving their defence. With a few injuries, namely that of William Saliba, Arsenal want a new centre-back, but ideally one who can also cover right-back.
Ezri Konsa and Jarell Quansah are the two biggest links at the moment, though as yet, there’s no big progress on either pursuit.
Arsenal, as well as Liverpool, have been linked with Barcelona defender Jules Kounde in the Spanish media.
The Gunners are said to be the club most interested in the French defender, who, like the English pair, can play both centre-back and right-back.
It’s reported Arsenal would be willing to pay a big fee to land Kounde, though the exact figure is not clear.
With his contract at Barca running until 2030, it would surely have to be a sizeable fee for the Spanish giants to let him go.
READ MORE: Arsenal ready to raise Konsa bid but have Plan B in place as Aston Villa star reaches decision on move
Arsenal told Kounde is ‘smart solution’
Responding to original links between Arsenal and Kounde, transfer insider Fabrizio Romano suggested Kounde would be a good option given the gaps the club need to cover.
He said: “Questions today also on Jules Kounde and Arsenal. At the moment, guys, nothing advanced.
“Arsenal, for sure, what I can add to the story is that Arsenal keep looking for a centre-back. Arsenal are working behind the scenes on a new centre-back.
“Tottenham are not selling [Cristian] Romero to Arsenal. I told you, this is why Romero is close to Atletico Madrid. Arsenal are still looking for a centre-back on the market.
“Kounde, in my personal opinion, would be a smart solution because he can be a right-back, he can be a centre-back. So he would be a good solution for Arsenal, who probably need to cover both positions in terms of players.
“But we will see how many they will add. Maybe it’s going to be just one, but at the moment from both sides they are not confirming any advanced negotiations for Jules Kounde to Arsenal.”
